Zoe Saldaña provides a tease forAvatar: Fire and Ashthat may hint at a unique fate for the Sully family.Avatar: Fire and Ashis the third installment of James Cameron’sAvatarfranchise, and the direct follow-up to his 2022 hitAvatar: The Way of Water. This step into Pandora will continue to expand the franchise’s lore by introducing an ash clan, who will be Na’vi antagonists in the film. After being delayed from its original 2024 release date,Avatar: Fire and Ashis coming this yearon June 21, 2025.
Speaking onVariety’s Awards Circuit Podcast, Saldaña provides insight into the arc ofAvatar 3. The Neytiri actor promised that the threequel is “going to be an emotional roller coaster.“She details that the ending ofThe Way of the Waterleft the Sully family having to “make really strong decisions.” Phrased as a question, she said “Do they stay united and find common ground, or do they go their separate ways?”. Check out the full quote from Saldaña below:
“It’s going to be an emotional roller coaster. The way ‘The Way of Water’ ended was unimaginably painful for the Sully family. Now, they have to make really strong decisions. Do they stay united and find common ground, or do they go their separate ways? And God knows what’s going to happen to the existing children.”
What This Means For Avatar: Fire And Ash
Avatar: Fire and Ashis already set to be ripe with divides. First of all, there will be divides within the Na’vi people as the Omatikaya and Metkayina clans presumably fight against the yet-unnamed ash clan. Saldaña suggests that there could be a major interpersonal divide, this time between members of the Sully family.Jake and Neytiriwere already seen harboring different opinions over how to deal with the humans inAvatar: The Way of Water.This could plant the seed for another riftinAvatar: Fire and Ash.
Avatar: The Way Of Water Ending Explained
Avatar: The Way of Water’s ending sets up a few storylines for its remaining sequels to tackle. Here’s how the Avatar 2 ending explained what’s next.
In another key aspect of her quote, Saldaña says “God knows what’s going to happen to the existing children.” The Sully couple’s eldest son,Neteyam, died during the events ofAvatar 2, which ended with them laying him down to rest so that he could reconnect with the Na’vi deity Eywa. Right now, Kiri, Lo’ak, Tuk, and their honorary son Spider all remain alive, but Saldaña’s ominous quote suggests that this may not be the case for long. She also notably refers to them as “the existing children,” suggesting that there could be more little Sullys to come.
Our Take On This Avatar: Fire And Ash Tease
Avatar 3 Needs Strong Character Development
Like both of its predecessors,Avatar: Fire and Ashis expected to be a multi-hour epic. To go beyond visual spectacle and maintain its narrative strength,Avatar 3is going to need to delve deeper into some of the new characters that were introduced inAvatar: The Way of Water. Creatingdivides within the Sully familycould be one major way to dig deeper, as said it would create conflict and force the Sully children to take sides, all the while maturing and developing in the process.
